Electric hair dryer



May 2 1967 J. F. WAHL 3,316,656

ELECTRIC HAIR DRYER Filed May 13, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet l May 2, 1967 J. F. WAHI.

ELECTRIC HAIR DRYER 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 l Filed May 13, 1964 May 2, 1967 ELECTRI C HAIR DRYER SSSSSSSSSSSS C3 United States Patent O 3,316,656 ELECTRIC HAIR DRYER John F. Wahl, Sterling, Ill., assignor to Wahl Clipper Corporation, Sterling, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Filed May 13, 1964, Ser. No. 367,174 1 Claim. (Cl. 341-199) This invention relates to an electric hair dryer, and more particularly to a portable electric hair dryer of light weight and convenient size and shape.

One object of the invention is to provide Ia compact and eh'icient electric hair dryer having a single external housing that encloses a iixed motor-fan-heater assembly and also contains space for storage of a permanently connected air hose, dryer hood and power cord.

Another object is to provide such a hair dryer wherein the motor-fan-heater assembly includes wall p-ortions that cooperate in complementary relation with walls of the external housing to form a motor enclosure, a fan enclosure, an air outlet duct and a storage compartment.

Another object is to provide such a hair dryer wherein the external h-ousing has an access opening that is opened and closed by a low friction sliding door.

Another and more detailed object is to provide a portable hair dryer having a housing of generally elliptical shape. In further detail, the housing comprises spaced elliptical front and rear walls .and a closure Wall extending between them. In preferred form, the access opening -for the housing is located in the closure wall, and the sliding door, which is iiexible in character, travels on an arcuate path of varying curvature.

Still another object is to provide a one piece sliding door having requisite strength, low friction and flexibility characteristic-s, and arcuate guide means mounting the door in the housing. The door is formed of thin flexible sheet material, and the longitudinally curved shape provided by the arcuate guide means imparts requisite lateral stiffness, if needed, to the 'thin material.

Other objects, advantages and details of the invention will be apparent as the description proceeds, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein a commercial form of the invention is shown. It is to be understood that the description and drawings are illustrative only, .and that the scope of the invention is to be measured by the appended claim.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view, partly broken away, of a hair dryer embodying the invention, the sliding door shown in vclosed position.

FIG. 2 is a plan view, partly in section and partly broken away, ofthe hair dryer shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional View on line 3-3 of FIG. 1, the hose, hood and power cord omitted.

FIG. 4 is a sectional View on line 4 4 of FIG 1, the hose, hood and power cord omitted.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the sliding housing door, partly broken away.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary rear elevational view of the hair dryer, the housing wall broken away.

FIG. 7 is an inside elevational View ofthe front housing wall.

FIG. 8 is an inside elevational view of the rear housing wall.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of circuitry used in the hair dryer.

Referring to the drawings, an electric hair dryer embodying the invention includes a housing 10 having a front wall 11 and spaced rear wall 12, both walls generally elliptical in shape. As best shown in FIGS. 2-4, the peripheries of front and rear walls 11 and 12 are connected by a closure wall 15.

In the form of the invention shown, closure wall 15 of 3,316,656 Patented May 2, 1967 ICC housing 10 comprises a peripheral flange 16 (FIGS. 3 and 4) on front housing wall 11 and -a peripheral flange 17 on rear housing wall 12, the two flanges engaging at the longitudinal center line of the housing with a tongue and groove joint 18.

An access opening 20` (FIG. 2) for housing 10 is provided in closure 'wall 15 at the upper part of the housing. Supporting feet 21 and 22 (FIG. l) are provided on the bottom part of the housing so the latter may 4rest stably on a iiat surface.

A sliding door 25, best shown in FIG. 5, is provided to open and Vclose access opening 20. Door 25 preferably is made of comparatively thin molded plastic material that has a low friction characteristic, for example polyethylene. Such materialin sheet fonn is liexible and resilient. In the illustrated embodiment, door 25 has such thickness that the longitudinal resilience thereof in enhanced by transversely scoring the external surface of the door with spaced grooves 26. These grooves, incidentally, impart a pleasing appearance. A transverse boss 27 is provided at the` free end of door 25 for manual manipulation.

Means are provided for mounting door 25 in access opening 2l) of the housing and for guiding the door on its travel path. In the form of the invention shown, front wall 11 adjacent opening 20 has spaced peripheral arcuate guide lianges 30 and 31, best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and rear wall 12 has peripheral arcuate guide flanges 32 and 33 aligned with anges 30, 31. The outer flanges 30 and 32 at the ends of opening 20 merge into the larger flanges 16 and 17, respectively, that form closure wall 15 of lthe housing. Inner flanges 31 and 33 extend peripherally and arcuately to the lower parts of walls 11 and 12, las best shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, to guide door 25 throughout its arcuate travel path in cooperation with closure wall 15. The longitudinal edge portions of door 25 are received between flanges 30, 31 and 32, 33, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and door 25 at all times, closed or open, is longitudinally curved, -a feature that provides requisite lateral stiffness in case the sheet material of the door is extremely thin and flexible.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 6, a motor-fan-heater assembly 35 is disposed within one end of housing 10. This assembly 35 is illustrated, described Iand claimed in copending application of Thaddeus E. Bednarski, John F. Wahl and Warren P. Wahl, Ser. No. 367,173, filed cori-` temporaneously with this application.

Y Motor-fan-heater assembly 35 includes wall portions that cooperate in complementary relation with thel walls of housing 10 to form a motor enclosure, a fan enclosure, an air outlet duct and a storage compartment. The cooperating wall portions of assembly 35 include a generally circular vertical plate portion 36, an arcuate hood portion 37, a tangential tail portion 38 of plate portion 36 and a horizontal portion 39 (FIG. l) that extends from y hood portion 37 and cooperates with tail portion 38 to form two walls of an air and 6).

Assembly 35 also includes a motor 45 (FIGS. 2 and 6) mounted on the rear side of plate portion 36. A motor shaft 46 extends through an opening 47 in portion 36 and carries at its free end a fan 48. The blades of fan 48 are aligned with the aforesaid air duct formed in part by tail and horizontal portions 38 and 39.

A resistance heater 50 (FIG. l) is mounted between fan 48 and air duct 40, projecting somewhat intoV the duct. A safety thermostat 51 is mounted nearby on plate portion 36.

As shown, arcuate hood portion 37 of motor-fan-heater assembly 35 divides the interior of housing 10 into two main compartments of unequal size. The smaller of these compartments is sub-divided, mainly by plate portion 36,

outlet duct 40 (FIGS. l, 4

into a motor enclosure, a fan enclosure and air outlet duct 40. The structures of these smaller enclosures, pf course, are completed by the adjacent parts of the front and rear housing walls 11 and 12 and closure wall 15. Similarly, adjacent parts of front wall 11 and closure wall 15 cooperate with tail and horizontal portions 38 and 39 to dene air outlet duct 40.

The other and larger of the two main compartments within housing is storage compartment 55. Sliding door 25 and opening 20, of course, provide ready access to this compartment.

As best shown in FIG. l, an elongated flexible hose 60 is connected more or less permanently at one end to air outlet duct 40. The opposite end of hose 60 is connected more or less permanently to a conventional drying hood 61. Storage compartment 55 is of ample size to store hose 6 0 and drying hood 61 when not in use, as well as power cord 62 for motor 45 and heater 50. Thus, all parts of my improved hair dryer are permanently attached to each other, and ready for use at any time without disassembly and reconnection. Further, all such parts are stored readily within compartment 55 when the dryer is not in use. v

Continuing with the description, FIG. 7 shows the inside of front housing wall 11. The inside surface of this wall is provided with spaced arcuate ilanges 65 and 66 that receive the adjacent lateral edge of arcuate hood portion 37 of motor-an-heater assembly 35. Flanges 65 and 66 merge into spaced horizontal flanges 67 and 68 that receive the adjacent edge of horizontal portionY 39 of assembly 35, thus sealing that corner of air duct 40.

Similarly, the inside surface of rear wall 12 (FIG. 8) has spaced arcuate flanges 70 and 71 that receive the adjacent edge of arcuate hood portion 37 of assembly 35. Hood portion 37 on the rear or motor side of plate portion 36 terminates short of the housing bottom. A row of spaced grill members 75 (FIGS. 4 and 6) extend between plate portion 36 and rear housing Wall 12 between the lower edge of hood portion 37 and the housing bottom. The free ends of grill members 75 are received in openings 76 of bosses 77 formed on rear housing wall 12 (FIGS. 4 and 8). Grill members 75 prevent small objects from being drawn into the motor and fan enclosures.

Completing the description, a four-position switch 80 (FIGS. 1, 6 and 9) is mounted on arcuate hood portion 37 of assembly 35. A control knob 81 for switch 80 is located for convenient adjustment through access opening 20. Knob 81 has an index mark 82 in effective relation with an adjacent legend 83 on hood portion 37.

The electrical circuitry of the hair dryer is conventional. The schematic diagram, FIG. 9, shows motor 45, resistance heater 50, thermostat 51 and switch 80. As indicated by legend 83, the four switch positions are OFF, COOL, WARM, and HOT, the motor being energized in each of the lastY three switch positions. As best shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, various apertured and threaded bosses 82a are provided on front and rear walls 11 and 12 for joining the walls in assembled relation and securing in place the motor-fan-heater assembly 35. The latter has apertured lugs 83a (FIGS. 1 and 6) in alignment with some of the apertured bosses 82, suitable screws being used to secure the parts together.

Exterior bosses 85, located at the housing ends, cooperate to anchor the ends of a suitable carrying strap, not shown.

From the above description it is thought that the construction and advantages of this invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Various changes in detail may be made without departing from the spirit or losing the advantages of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

An electric hair dryer comprising:

a housing having spaced front and lrear walls of generally elliptical shape and a closure wall extending between said front and rear Walls, said closure wall having an access opening;

a motor-fan-heater assembly mounted within an end portion of said housing away from said access opening, said .assembly including wall portions cooperating in complementary relation with walls of said housing to form a fan enclosure and an air outlet duct;

a sliding door of thin resilient .plastic sheet material in effective relation with said access opening;

arcuate guide means on said housing mounting said door on a longitudinally extending arc to open and close said access opening;

a flexible air hose having one end connected to said air outlet duct; and

a dryer hood connected to the other end of said hose,

the space within said housing unoccupied by said motor-fan-heater assembly at least large enough for storing said hose and hood.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,107,997 2/ 1938 Horsley 312-297 2,591,669 4/1952 Bucknell et al. 219-370 3,220,119 11/1965 Jepson et al. 34-99 FOREIGN PATENTS 515,875 12/ 1939 Great Britain.

FREDERICK L. MATTESON, JR., Primary Examiner.

A. D. HERRMANN, Assistant Examiner. 

